GEIL to Present Memory Modules with CL1.5 Timings

GEIL, a top maker of memory modules, said Tuesday it would unveil DDR memory modules with unbelievably low CAS latency settings of 1.5 at Computex Taipei 2005. The products are expected to bring extreme performance to enthusiasts whose systems are capable of operating with such setting.

The memory module manufacturer said its DDR SDRAM sticks would be clocked at 400MHz with CL1.5 latency settings. So far the lowest latency setting for PC3200 memory has been CL2.0. GEIL declined to provide any additional details about the modules, but called its achievement’s result as “sustaining leading position in extreme performance memory module market”. Currently the influence of such low timings on performance is unclear.

Numerous applications rely more on memory timings, a number of cycles that a memory controller needs to access a memory module or perform other operation, rather than on frequency of random access memory. Furthermore, AMD Athlon XP- and AMD Athlon 64-based computers also benefit more from low latency settings rather than from improved memory speed, unlike Intel Pentium 4 chips.

A poll carried out by X-bit labs has shown that about 61% of end-users prefer high-speed modules with aggressive timings, while only 20% clearly favour timings over clock-speed and 19% of respondents would buy memory modules with extreme frequency without paying attention to latency settings.